How Far Will You Go?
by Death-Angel-Hikari
Summary: One young boy, living in the shadow of his 'perfect' older brother. But what happens when he stumbles upon a dark secret and finds out that things aren't what they seem?
1. Prologue

A/N: I know, I know...I still have some ongoing fics (three at the last count), but I had to get this out before I went on; otherwise, my PC would have eaten my files again, and I'd have lost the idea for this story...which, by the way, had a _very _strange inspiration...

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**Prologue**

The soil along the bank slowly washes away, enticed to slumber by the water's gurgling lullaby.The bits and pieces float and drift along, sinking slowly to the bottom to join their fellows in the hazy twilight of the lowest reaches of the river.

_Nothing lasts forever_

_Though we wish it were so..._

The fire leaps and dances, exulting in the heat and illumination it provides. However, all too soon, it seems, its flames are doused, and nothing more is left but half-blackened wood, smoke, and gray ashes.

_Everything can be had at once_

_But soon we must let go..._

The trees of the forests thrive, reaching their leafy boughs to the sky, trying to catch something as yet unknown to us. Though their lives are quite long, it is easily ended with a single match or a swing of an axe.

_Words and whispers and wanton thoughts_

_Remain for but a moment..._

The rose, well-known for its beauty, is nonetheless a symbol for the fleeting quality of life; it blooms, and then dies, a cold darkness slowly engulfing its warm red petals and scattering them to the wind.

_Though we struggle to keep our hold,_

_These are forever evanescent..._

Man is no different from these things. Though we have wills and spirits all our own, we are still prone to that one law of Nature.

_'Tis ironic, then, that oftentimes_

_We only take to heart_

Nothing lives forever.

_The value of what once was worthless_

_When with it we're forced to part..._

Man has long fought to keep Life within his grasp, despite the odds. And while there exists technology that can help one live longer than expected, none yet exists that can extend a lifespan into eternity.

It's a rule, an ever-present law of opposites kept in balance. We laugh, we cry. We give, we take. We agree, we disagree. We love, we hate. We live, we die. Each of our actions belongs to one of two forces thought to exist by the Orient.

_Yin_ and _yang_. Light and darkness.

While we live - _yin_, essentially - not all we do represents the light; there will always be dark deeds, words, thoughts. And when we _do_ die - succumb to the _yang_, darkness - not all descend to the Realm of Darkness, the Kingdom of Hades; most, if not all, are led towards the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.

Often what vexes those left behind is not the thought of death itself, but whether that person is in pain and suffering, or enjoying the pleasures of that dimension where the cherubim and seraphim reside, in eternal happiness.

This doesn't mean, though, that _everyone_ feels this way. There will always be someone who wishes the dead would be revived. Sadly, though, this is impossible in the present time, where miracles are always a mix of science and the inherent determination of man.

However, if you _were_ granted the opportunity to bring someone you held dear back to life, would you take it? Or would you let Nature take its course?

For one man, the answer to that question was fairly simple.

* * *

Another haunting cry broke the silence, as a night bird, its form a stark shadow against the deep blue-black of the evening sky, shot through the air and returned its mate's call. Only the mildest of breezes was felt, stirring only slightly the long grasses that lined the cobbled walkway, surrounded by gravestones of varying sizes.

A sudden flash of white in the depressing darkness, seeming to reflect fully the light coming from the half moon, hung low in the sky. Only a flower, a pale lily, hanging from the fingers of a man, his skin nearly as pale as the flower he held, his hair as dark as the shadows.

The soft _click-clack_ of his heels as he traversed the walkway, his raven tresses moving only slightly in the gentle breeze, several strands caressing his grim face.

Finally, he came to a stop in front of one gravestone, the name of the deceased engraved in gold upon the cool gray granite. With one hand, he placed the lily in the small crevasse, deliberately carved in to hold flowers or candles, and ran the fingers of the other over the lettering, the gold leaf glittering faintly in the moonlight.

He was a professor of biology at the nearby university, this man, and the unfortunate soul buried beneath the gravestone had been his student. His _best_, in fact.

The man sighed, passing a hand briefly over his amber eyes. His student had shown such promise, and at the tender age of seventeen! And then, without warning, that horrible accident...

Apparently, the boy's parents had learned of it the failed operation, for when the professor had tried to contact them, no one answered, his calls went unreturned. Perhaps they'd left the country, he thought, or, more likely, killed themselves. After all, the mother had left the acceptable age for childbirth, more than five years past now.

He'd been the only child, this boy; a brother had been born in his childhood, but sadly, the neonate had not survived a week. All their hopes and dreams had lain with this one boy, who now lay six feet under.

The professor himself had suggested they bury the student on the university cemetery, saying he deserved this honor, submitting as proof the student's exemplary grades and the shining comments from fellow faculty regarding the seventeen-year-old's prowess.

_Such a shame..._ the young man thought, resting one hand lightly on the top of the gravestone as he stared up at the dark sky, clouded with graying clouds that obscured the moon and cast uneven shadows on the cobbles. _You were already outshining those in the upper years, and then _this_ had to happen to you!_

And then a small smile crept onto the professor's pale face. _But no matter...it won't be long now. You've inspired me, young man..._ He straightened, taking his hand off the granite and allowing it to rest at his side, clenched tight with resolve. _Because of you and your death, I've discovered _it_, the secret every scientist has been _dying_ to get their hands on! And it's all thanks to _you_…_

The nighttime birds began their calling once more, joined by the crickets with their tiny violins setting the tune. The wind picked up, nearly blowing his dark blue jacket off and setting his hair to streaming all about him.

The smile grew wider as he listened to Nature all around him, singing to him with a silent melody of encouragement, as though the moon, the stars, the animals could read his mind, could know what he was planning, and that they agreed with him.

The young man glanced down at his feet, thinking how, soon, the person lying beneath the loam would soon give life to another, similar in intelligence and aptitude.

The raven-haired man turned away, not noticing that the lily had been blown out of its holder and onto the stone. _Very soon, young one...very soon..._

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A/N: I think it's fairly obvious who this professor is, don't you? XD Anyway, as always, please let me know what you think so far. _Domo arigatou gozaimasu_!

Peace out!


	2. Chapter 1: Dramatis Personae

A/N: Yeah, I know I haven't finished 'Hikari' yet, but I thought I'd get this out before I lost the inspiration and the idea...

Has anyone even read the prologue yet? I need to know if I have a good story here... (sweatdrops) sorry if I sound pushy, but I need the feedback so I'll know which stories to concentrate on. _Arigatou!_

Disclaimer: _Naruto to kyarakutaa wa watashi no dewa nai. Kishimoto Masashi no desu. _(Bet you can't guess what that means! XD)**

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**Chapter 1: Dramatis Personae**

Uzumaki Naruto sighed as he stared out the window, away from the boring, dull slate-gray walls and dark forest green blackboard. Outside, the sun was warm, but tempered by a refreshing breeze; birds sang their chirping songs, a twittering melodic cacophony of tiny beaks moving in and out of concert. This wasn't the time to be inside a stifling classroom; he'd give anything to be back in his apartment, relaxing on the deck chair he'd set up on the terrace and sipping a cold drink.

"Darn it...I wish school were over already..." he muttered.

His seatmate, pink-haired Haruno Sakura, stared at him as though he'd suddenly grown a second pair of eyes standing up on stalks on the top of his head. "And what? Find out you've failed every subject but PE? Get real, Naruto..."

"Well, you never know, Sakura-_chan_," the blonde fifteen-year-old replied, grinning widely, "I might have passed more than PE by the end of this term..."

"With _your_ attitude towards schoolwork?" Sakura rolled her eyes. "I doubt it..."

"Don't forget, Naruto, we take the qualifiers in the second semester." The girl in the desk behind Sakura's spoke up, what little sunlight reached her bouncing off her round glasses. She reached up to tuck some stray strands of charcoal black hair - too long to be considered bangs, but too short to be tied back - behind her ear. "It isn't just a matter of passing your subjects this year, but also about finding a good high school. And slacking off isn't going to get you into the best schools, you know..."

"Yeah, yeah...thanks for the reminder, Kei..." Naruto rolled _his_ eyes, but then smiled. "Well, at least I have a few more months to go before I have to start buckling down and actually _working_..."

Sakura groaned, while amethyst-eyed Kei frowned slightly. "Naruto, I thought you'd learned your lesson after-"

The blue-eyed boy chuckled suddenly, cutting her off. "Chill! I was only kidding! I did my homework last night, okay? So ease off on the lecture; you're beginning to sound like the teachers!"

They had a good laugh at that one; what Naruto said _was_ true, but Kei didn't _want_ to become a teacher, which was ironic in a way.

"In any case, I hope that's not a one-time thing..." the charcoal-haired girl said as she turned away, retrieved something for her schoolbag.

Sakura brightened when she saw what it was. "Ooh, let me see!" she exclaimed suddenly, getting up.

"...It's just a rough sketch..." Kei protested as she flipped slowly through the A4-size sketchbook. "I don't think its worth looking at yet..."

"Aw, c'mon, Kei!" Sakura pleaded, leaning towards the other girl's desk. "Your drawings are _always _worth looking at..." The jade-eyed teen reached out and carefully flipped the pages so they wouldn't fold or wrinkle in any way, and then stopped when she found what seemed to be the most recent addition. "Rough sketch, my butt..." she grinned. "This seems pretty fleshed out to me..."

"Well, it's still a bit off; besides, I don't think I captured his personality... It needs refining, Sakura, believe me..."

Naruto stood up, too, out of curiosity, and joined Sakura in having a look at the beginnings of their friend's latest project. Upon first glance, though, his jaw dropped open and his eyes widened. "What the-"

There, grinning up from the slightly textured paper, was a pencil sketch of _him_. The paper-and-pencil Naruto was leaning back in a wooden classroom chair - which was balanced on its two rear legs. He'd put his feet up on the table in front of him and was blowing a bubble gum bubble.

Then, the blonde teen grinned. "Hey! This is pretty good!" He held the sketchbook up to get a closer look. "May I have the finished version?"

"I'll think about it, Naruto..." Kei replied, smiling as she gently took the pad back from her friend, and then sat back down. Taking her favorite sketching pencil - she had another one for taking notes - she turned to a clean page. Sakura and Naruto both sat back down, knowing immediately not to disturb the fifteen-year-old. Instead, they both started conversing in hushed tones.

After a few minutes, the already-familiar chime of the school bell begun tolling throughout the building, and then their teacher, Umino Iruka, walked in. As usual, he had his small pile of three to four books and a clipboard with him, and a small smile on his face.

Kei didn't pay any attention - after all, each day began like this - until whispers started to her right. She glanced up, and her hand ceased moving.

The dark brown-haired young man stood behind his desk at the head of the classroom, as was his custom, but next to him, his gaze averted to the floor, was a boy their age.

"We have a new classmate?" Naruto mouthed. Kei mouthed back "Well, that's what it looks like..."

"Great! Someone new to prank!"

"Don't you _dare_..." Sakura hissed, reaching over and grabbing the blue-eyed teen's wrist in a vise-like grip, making Naruto wince. "You remember the last time you pranked someone, don't you?"

Naruto wrenched his hand away from Sakura's and rubbed it, wincing once more when his fingers ran over the place where the girl's nails had dug in. "All right, all right, I won't..."

Iruka-_sensei_ cleared his throat, and the whispers died down; everyone paid rapt attention as a sign of respect to the newcomer.

"_Ohayou_, _minna_," Iruka began, smiling once more. "As you can see, we have a new student with us." He moved closer to his young companion, bringing him along as he stepped forward. "Everyone, this is Uchiha Sasuke. I know that some of you know how awkward and how difficult it is to be a 'newbie' - especially _this_ far into the first semester. So I expect that you'll try your best to make him feel welcome."

The class nodded as one being, making their teacher smile once more.

"Well, Sasuke, let's find you a seat." Iruka scratched the side of his nose, right next to the bandage that went across it, and then fell silent for a while as he searched for a vacant spot, which he found less than thirty seconds later. "Gaara, do you mind moving to the seat next to Hinata's?"

Kei glanced at the red-haired, teal-eyed teen as he stood up and gathered his things, and was sorry to lose him - Sabaku Gaara had been of invaluable help to her in History.

"Sasuke, you can sit next to Kurozuki Kei. She's one of the best students in the class this semester; she'll help you catch up pretty quick..." The newcomer merely nodded as he took his seat, hanging his schoolbag from the hook at the left side of the desk.

Kei snuck a quick look at her new seatmate. He was pale when compared to most of her male classmates, and he had a lonely, yet aloof look about him. His blue-black hair stuck up slightly at the back, the bangs perfectly framing piercing obsidian eyes. And then she realized he was staring back at _her_.

_Ooops!_ Quickly the amethyst-eyed girl reached into her bag. She took out three notebooks and then handed them to Sasuke. "H-here!" she said, fighting the urge to burst out into a string of apologies for staring at him. "Those are my notes for History, English, and Chemistry. We're having Math in a few minutes, so I'm going to need my notebook for that subject. But you can copy it after class if you like."

The Uchiha barely moved his head as he placed the red, violet, and dark green notebooks in a neat pile to one end of his desk. With the other hand he reached into _his_ schoolbag and took out a fresh notebook and dark gray mechanical pencil.

_Well...that could have gone worse..._ Kei thought as she turned back to her own math notebook and opened it to a new page.

"All right, everyone!" Iruka-_sensei _called. "Please hand in your math homework. I'll try to give them back to you by the middle of next week." There was a shuffle as document folders were rifled through, homework sheets brought out and passed forward by column - the system they'd worked out at the beginning of the term. As soon as all the sheets had been handed in, their teacher laid them in a neat stack next to his clipboard.

"Well, let's not waste any more time," the brown-haired teacher began, picking up a piece of chalk and turning towards the chalkboard. "Since we're done with functions and their inverses..."

* * *

"Hey, Kei!"

The girl turned to see Naruto running towards her. Close behind him was Sakura, yelling at him to slow down; the two of them always walked home together because their houses - in Naruto's case, apartment - were in the same general direction. Kei stopped to give her friends a chance to catch up. At length, they did.

"You up for the arcade?" Naruto asked the second he got his breath back.

Kei shook her head apologetically. "I'm sorry, Naruto, Sakura, but I'd planned on heading home to finish my homework. There's not a lot, but its going to be hard to do it all in one night, in case you haven't noticed..."

"Aww..." the blonde teen looked disappointed. "But Sakura-_chan_ isn't as good at Air Hockey Slam or Hoop Stars as you; I need a _real_ challenge!"

"What. Was. _That_?" Sakura leered at the blue-eyed boy, her right fist clenched tight. Naruto backed away, hands up in a defensive position.

"Hehehe...uh, n-nothing, Sakura-_chan_, nothing!"

"Oh, really? I'm pretty sure I heard _something_..."

That was Naruto's cue to start running, which he did; Sakura was close on his heels.

"You get back here, Uzumaki!" she yelled, waving her schoolbag menacingly in the air. "Get back here and say it to my face, why don't you?!"

Kei chuckled softly to herself as she watched her friends speed through the gate. Then she started walking towards the gate herself.

"Oof!" she exclaimed as she bumped into someone's back. Hard. She stumbled backward and dropped her bag. Meanwhile, the person she'd bumped into dropped several schoolbooks.

"Ah! _Sumimasen_..." the charcoal-haired girl said as she bent down, both to retrieve her bag _and_ to help gather up the fallen tomes; she picked up two and then handed them back to the owner. But when she glanced up, she nearly dropped the books again.

"U-Uchiha-_san_!"

Dull eyes stared out of a blank face, the mouth stationary in a thin line. And then he stood and held a hand out to her, his face still frozen in a emotionless mask - quite disturbing, considering the boy's age. Slowly, Kei reached out; Sasuke tightened his grip and helped her stand up.

"I-I'm so sorry, Uchiha-_san_..." Kei said again, averting her gaze. "I guess...I was so busy thinking about my schedule for today that I didn't see where I was going..." Sasuke simply took the last of his schoolbooks out of her hands. The amethyst-eyed teen took a deep breath, and then spoke again. "Uh...I was wondering if you needed any help with today's homework. I-I tried to jot down as much as I could from the start of the semester, but I'm afraid my notes aren't as complete as I'd have hoped, so..."

"Save it, Kurozuki," Sasuke interrupted suddenly, holding up a hand as though doing so would block any sound coming from Kei. "I'll get by on my own..."

"Well...if that's the case, then you can keep my notebooks with you for the night; I can do without them for a day." Kei smiled, trying to be friendly with the newcomer. "Just give them back first thing tomorrow. Is that all right?"

The raven-haired teen turned away, shoving one hand deep into his pocket, the other clutched his schoolcase. "Whatever..."

Feeling more than a bit miffed, Kei turned and began walking away as well, heading for the gate.

_He could have been a bit more civil..._ the charcoal-haired girl thought as she stepped off the school grounds. _If not that, he could have tried _talking_ a bit more..._ She reached into her bag and took out the small, black notebook where she always took down the homework for the day. She flipped it open with one hand and then stopped to put her bag down; she'd need her other hand to flip through the pages individually. Soon, she found the page she was looking for, picked up her bag, and resumed walking.

_So...that's an entire exercise sheet for Math..._ she scanned through the contents of the page, eyes flitting back and forth as she read. _A one-paragraph poem analysis and an essay distinguishing the Shakespearean and Sarsperian sonnet for English...and Part A of the exercise sheet for today's History lesson... _Kei glanced at her watch. _It's a quarter past four now...that means I'll reach home at around quarter to five... Nope, no time to catch the movie today, then..._

She slid the notebook back into her bag and then sighed. _Well, its not very likely that Dad would let me even if I _did_ finish everything early...It's a school night, after all..._ One of Kei's dad's rules was no movies on school and Sunday nights. _Well, I guess I'll just have to hope that he's in a good mood for bargaining tomorrow..._

* * *

"_Tadaima_," Sasuke called out into the dim hallway of the apartment. Opening the door a bit more, he got a better view of the interior; as far as he could tell, it was pretty empty. He stepped into the foyer - a sunken platform, lower in height than that of the floor of the main hallway - allowing the door to swing shut and enveloping him entirely in darkness. The dark-haired teen didn't mind at all.

_Strange... _Sasuke thought as he reached up and flicked the switch, bathing the hallway in a pale light; it was probably time to replace _this_ lightbulb. _Kabuto is usually back from the university by this time..._

After removing his shoes, he left his school bag on the nearest chair - right next to the coatrack - and moved into the living room. He glanced around; painstakingly neat, as was expected from his guardian. He wouldn't be surprised if, upon walking over to the bookcase, he'd find that the silver-haired, bespectacled young adult would have arranged his books by author, and then date of publication. Though an interesting idea, Sasuke wasn't in the mood to investigate that day. Instead, he walked into the kitchen and over to the refridgerator. Opening the fridge door, he rummaged around a bit. After a while, he stood up, a cup of blueberry yoghurt in one hand and a small plastic spoon in the other. These two he set on the oak table in the center of the room, and then he went back out into the hall to retrieve his school bag.

He took out Kei's four notebooks. He hadn't glanced at them the entire day, but now he decided to take a look; there were some things he didn't understand all that well, but he'd been loathe to ask her to come over and help. He didn't want Kabuto to come home and see a stranger helping him with schoolwork.

He chose the blue one - Math - to start with, flipped it open, and then brought out his own notebook for that subject. He turned to a clean page and began.

* * *

_Uchiha Sasuke..._ Sakura thought, smiling dreamily as she glanced up from her book and out the window. There was a silver slipper of a moon tonight, casting very little light on the streets below; on a night like this, it was easy to become a target for a mugging or some other similar crime, and Sakura thanked her lucky stars that she was safe at home.

She got up from her desk and walked over to her bookshelf and returned the one she'd been reading - _Tales of the Otori_ - and then glanced at the CD rack next to the shelf. It was time now to get back to her homework, and perhaps some music would get her mind of their enigma of a new classmate; she couldn't allow herself to be distracted. Not yet, at least. Soon, she decided on Namie Amuro's new album and returned to her desk. She slipped the CD into her player and pressed _Play_ after fixing the earphones in place.

* * *

"Aw, man..." Naruto groaned, slumping over his desk. His pencil clattered to the floor, but the blonde didn't bother picking it up. Instead, he glanced wearily at the book lying open in front of him. "I don't get it at all..."

It was the poem they had to analyze for English. Naruto had decided to finish it first because it seemed the hardest. Now he had a feeling he wouldn't be able to finish the rest of his homework.

_Guess I'd better call for back-up..._ he thought as he got up and walked over to his phone. Picking up the reciever, he quickly punched in the numbers and waited.

One ring...two...three...

"C'mon...pick up..." Naruto muttered, staring at the wall clock; it was already ten minutes to six in the evening.

On the fifth ring, there was a click. And then...

"Moshi moshi?"

"Kei? It's Naruto."

"_Eh? Naruto, what's wrong? Why are you calling?_"

"I'm having trouble with the poem analysis thing..." Naruto replied. "The stanzas don't seem to be connected to each other _at all_."

"_Well...why don't you try getting the imagery for each stanza, and then seeing if you can find a similar factor in all six? Or try looking at the voice of the speaker in each. Is he acknowledging? Lamenting? Things like that._"

"Hmm...you may have a point, looking at the parts before looking at the whole..." Naruto glanced back at the mess on his desk and smiled. "Thanks, Kei. I've got an idea on how to go about it now..."

"Dou itashimashita, _Naruto. At least I know you're working hard now..._"

"Er...yeah..." The blue-eyed teen smiled sheepishly, even though there was no one to see. "Anyway, see you tomorrow. Can we compare analyses, by the way?"

"_Sure, no problem. See you._" With a soft _click_, the line went dead, and Naruto cradled the reciever. Then he returned to his desk and sat down. Pulling a blank sheet of lined paper towards him, he glanced at the first stanza of the poem and began to write.

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A/N: Aaargh! Sakura's solo scene was so short! I couldn't think of anything else to add to it! I just hope it 'introduced' her well enough... Oh, and for those who don't know, 'dramatis personae' is like an introduction of the characters in a play or movie (I see it in all of Shakespeare's works and in the school plays I was required to watch)...Just felt like using it for this fic... 


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